Best handgun for hunting-44mag or 454 ?

[themixedgamebag]

I am in the market to purchase a nice handgun for hunting Whitetail deer at about 30 yards max. (real thick cover where I hunt), What would be the recommended caliber? I know very little about handguns and the power packed in the various calibers. I was told that the 454 might be good because it would be more versatile for larger game as well. Could some folks please give me some insight on this subject. Thanks. :?

[southern utah]

I will only pack the 454 in the deep dark woods where there would be something BIG and hungry ,it would be backed up by the Marlin 450MR or 444. Most of the time it's a 44 S&W mountain gun , not to heavy but big enough to do some serious damage. 240gr Starfires .

[bigbore442001]

I would think that the 44 would suffice. But the option of having more power at hand makes the 454 more desireable. Ten years ago you were limited to one gun, the Freedom Arms. Now you are able to get guns from Ruger and Taurus.

Keep in mind that you can shoot 45 Colt ammo and loads in between full house 454's. I would look into that aspect. You could practice with 45 Colt and then shoot the mid range 454 for deer. If luck comes your way and have the chance to hunt something like elk, the extra power of the full house loads will be nice to have.

[MS Hitman]

Check you personal messages

[JD HHI 6092®]

If you've had a chance to shoot both, I would suggest to purchase the one you shoot more accurately.  Shot placement is more important than power.

[myronman3]

the 44 mag.   i let the horsepower bug bite me when i bought and got the 454.   way more than i will ever need.   have since went back and bought a 44 and would venture to guess that the 454 wont get used that much anymore.   love the gun,  fun to shoot;  but definately way more than is needed for whitetails.

[GringoHunter]

I recommend the 44 mag. Using a 200 gr @ 1500 fps or a 240 gr @ 1400 gets about 1000 lbs of energy at the muzzle with controlable recoil. Should take any whitetail out to 75 or 100 yds with good shot placement.
Although, with the 454, if the deer was inside 25 yds, if you missed, the muzzle blast would probably still kill it. He He! Seriously though, the flinch factor from severe recoil is hard to overcome. The best hunting handgun is the most accurate one you can shoot with confidence.

Just my 2 cents worth.

Gringo Hunter

[rp]

I just picked up an Encore (currently getting a trigger job)
I live in Iowa. I got the 15"209X50 so I can hunt early or late mz season with a pistol. But I'm would also like a center fire tube in .44 or .454. I've shot a Contender in .44 but never a 454. My reasoning for the 454 over the .44 would be mostly range. In capable hand is this a 200 yard deer gun?

[Bob_K]

I think Rick B has it right.  If you are not currently a pistol shooter, the last thing you want to start leaning on is a high performance .44 and higher.  A .22, or even an air pistol, will allow you to learn the lessons of sight alignment and trigger control.  The blast and recoil of the .44/.454 will mask your shot execution errors, and if you can't determine your errors, you can't fix them.  Learn to shoot pistol first, then consider moving up to handgun hunting.  Pistol shooting is not just rifle shooting with a shorter barrel.  If you start with the .44 and do not see good performance, one is apt to blame the pistol or the loads rather than the execution.  Ultimately the experience can turn to off to handguns altogether, and such would be the pity.

[J.Solo]

I have a 7.5" Freedom Arms .454 and a Ruger .44 mag and like them both. I will only shoot the .454 about a month before deer season and very limited shooting at that. Just enough to make sure the sights and loads have not changed.  I have had it for about 10 years. It is not a fun gun to shoot so range "fun" time shooting is also limited. In order to protect my ears in the woods I have to make sure my ear flaps are down, coat collar is up high over my ears and the ringing still lasts for a few hours after each shot. Luckely only one shot is needed per deer. I use it for stand hunting and general stalking.

The Ruger started out as a 10.5" bull barreled New Model Super Black Hawk. I had it cut down to 5 5/8" and Magnaported. I did this because I wanted the weight of a full bull barrel, and the  longer all steel ejector rod and housing to fully eject spent brass. I can shoot the Ruger all day throughout the year and feel cumfortable hunting small game, varmints and White tail Deer. This gun is a pleasure to shoot. I use this gun mainly for stand hunting in thick cover and stalking in thick cover but have also used it for shots under 100 yards in open woods.

Sometimes I sit, look at the .454 and wonder why I spent close to $1000 for a gun I only shoot a couple of times a year. But this all changes, if only for a moment, when I take those shots at one or two deer.  

If I had to choose between the two guns I would sadly give up the .454 and keep the .44 mag. as my all around hunting gun.

If you have experience with handguns, I would recommend going with a .44 mag.. You will learn more about the gun because you will be shooting it more and having more fun in doing so. Just my thoughts - I could be wrong. Good luck - J.Solo

[MS Hitman]

J. Solo,

What load are you shooting, and do you reload?  One does not need "elephant" loads for deer and 454s can be tamed down.

[J.Solo]

MS Hitman:

I'm using:

250 grain Hornady XTP-HP over 32.9 grains of W-296

300 grain Hornady XTP-HP over 30 grains of W-296

250 grain Bull-X Hard Cast Lead Flat Point over 31 grains of W-296

J.Solo

[Mikey]

mixedgamebag:  Rick B and Bob_K have it right.  If you are not yet a pistol shooter, start light, or small and go up from there.  The 44 Magnum will shoot 44 Special and 44 Russian for low end loads and you can go hard and heavy from there.  The 454 can fire 45 Colt loads and you can work up to the heavier 454 loads from there.

It sounds as though you do not need anything more than the 44 magnum with what you intend to hunt and the distances you mentioned.  There are tons of 44 magnum loads that will go you for most of North America's big game.  It is my preference.  Hope this helps.  Mikey.

[WARPhEAGLE]

I agree that the best money you can spend would be for a smaller, inexpensive to shoot pistol to get the "feel" of a handgun. I got a Colt .22 Peacemaker for Chirstmas when I was a teenager back in the 70's and I'm sure I've shot 1,000s of rounds through it over the years. I could tell stories of fond memories with that gun that would bore everyone to tears, but suffice it to say that if you get a good .22 you will never want to part with it. Now, on to big guns. I have no experience with the 454, but I got my first .44 last summer. I had gotten the handgun hunting bug (for deer, that is), and read everything I could for several months before deciding on a Ruger SRH .44 mag. I also got a reloader and got down to the business of learning to shoot a bigger handgun. I had already made a deal with myself that I would not hunt with it the first season, I wanted to make sure I was accurate with it enough to suit my expectations. Two things that I did that really helped my accuracy. Number 1 was getting a scope, although not a "pricey" high magnification, (Simmons 2x), it helped my accuracy tremendously. The second was to work up a low-moderate type load that doen't beat you up while you practice. (I am currently shooting a 240 gr XTP with 17.1 gr of 2400). My groups are getting better, and I hope that I will be able to hunt with it this fall, as most of my hunting is in the woods where shots will be less than 50 yards. As I said above, I can't tell you nearly as much as some of these other guys re: the .454, but my experience with the .44 mag has been wonderful. Good luck!

[Zachary]

Although the 44 has been around for years and has, and will continue to, kill just about everything, the .454 is better for hunting or, if the recoil is too much, the .480.  I should know - I both :wink: .

Zachary

[Hcliff]

The 44 mag is a great cartridge.  If you have to ask about the 454 it means you are not ready for one (I don't have one either but I do have a 480.  That get handloaded hotter than factory )  The 454 is a great cartridge for the seasoned handgunner.  It is NOT the one to start with.

The 44 mag is more that most people are efficient with.  It has loss some of it sex apeal in the last few years.  They have take every kind of game with a 44 mag including buffalo and elephant.  Don't let it fool you it was the big daddy for a long time.  The 44 is still not a great starter gun  

I like to have people start with a 357magnum.  Enough power to take a deer with good shot placement. (Yes It is not the most powerful and state regs should be looked at)  Some good hunting ammo is a vailable.  The neat thing aboput a 357 is that you can shoot 38 just to learn about the gun and to practice.  Even in 357 Mag it is fairly cheap to shoot. $12 a box aroung here for UMC ammo vs $19 for the 44.  Whe you get good with the 357 you can trade it in on another gun like a 44 (or keep it like me)  The 38 fells light like a 22 to start.  I agree with getting the 22 but know you want something with power.  A 22 is a great investment to learn how the sights work and how trigger pull is so important.

I remember when I got my first big gun , it was a 357.  It took practice.  You gauge is how far away you can hit a pie plate every time.  This is you maximum distance to shoot from to big game hunt with.  With handgun hunting you have to think like a bow hunter.  You have to be willing to watch the greatest animal you have ever seen, that is out of gun range, walk away.  

Once you start it is a diesase with no cure.  Then you can get bigger, scoped, single shots, customs, specialized 22, etc


Sorry for the ramblings

Hcliff

[Paul H]

44 mag handsdow for what you'll be doing.  

The only advantage the 454 has is for long range shooting, and for game in the 750# and heavier class.

[HoCoMDHunter]

If you reload, I would go with the 454.  You will pay a little extra, but it gives you greater versatility.  You can load regular 45 Colt for practice and getting used to the gun.  The recoil for this is very mild.  45 Heavy Colt would be a good hunting round for deer in the ranges you describe.    
   I can load the 45 Colt to near 44 magnum velocities (ONLY IN A 454!!) and then have the 454 that can be loaded up or down.
   That being said, the 44 mag is plenty for what you will be doing.  The 454 is really overkill for deer unless you are taking long shots.